Jungfer

German Etymology Weakened form of de Jungfrau (cf. nl juffer). Both words originally meant “unmarried (noble) woman” but have become semantically distinct. Compare de Junker, constructed and reduced similarly. Pronunciation de /ˈjʊŋ.fɐ/ de De-Jungfer.ogg <<Germany>> (<<Berlin>>) Noun f chen de archaic maid, maiden; virgin de Jungfrau unmarried woman; (old) maid, spinster de Nach dem Krieg herrschte Männermangel und viele Frauen sind Jungfer geblieben. After the war, there was a deficit of men and many women stayed unmarried. de printing archaic petit a size of type between Kolonel and Bourgeois, standardized as 8 point de Petit Jungfrauschrift Usage notes As with the en old maid, de Jungfer is most often used in combination with the adjective de alt old: de eine alte Jungfer. The term is used as an intensifier and does not necessarily denote the woman is actually elderly. The word has decreased in usage with changing mores but is not yet dated. While not per se pejorative, it can connote a lack of social success and may be considered offensive. Declension f Derived terms de entjungfern de Jungfernhäutchen n de Jungfernfahrt f de Jungfernflug m de Kammerjungfer See also de Junggeselle male counterpart Further reading de de Female people